ARLINGTON, Texas​​ — Jim McElwain used the word “whooped” three times Saturday in his post-game press conference.

When Florida offensive lineman Martez Ivey came to the podium later, he was asked his thoughts on the Gator line getting “whooped” all day in a 33-17 Michigan win at AT&T Stadium.

“Um … I wouldn’t,” he said, shaking his head. “Next question.”

But there’s no hiding from how bad the Florida offense was Saturday. It only scored three points — they came on the opening drive — and the defense scored 14, with two interceptions returned for touchdowns.

Florida’s offense struggling is nothing new — the Gators have finished outside the top 99 nationally in scoring in each of McElwain’s two seasons — but the line was supposed to be a strength this time around.

On Saturday, the Gators averaged 0.4 yards rushing and allowed six sacks. No player ran for more than 13 yards. The Wolverines were constantly in the backfield, beating double-teams without much trouble at times.

Yes, the quarterback situation remains in flux — and receiver Antonio Callaway and running back Jordan Scarlett were among 10 players suspended for the game — but the Gators had four starters back on a line McElwain had said was his best group. And although they went up against a Michigan defense with one returning starter total, it didn’t matter.

Two months ago, one Gators player publicly predicted the opposite. Running back Mark Thompson tweeted, “The disrespect is crazy. I can’t wait ’till we beat the brakes off Michigan.”

Thompson finished the game Saturday with 13 yards on five carries.

When Michigan began to pull away in the second half and Florida had to pass the ball more, the Wolverines were relentless. Three of Florida’s final eight plays resulted in sacks, including a two-play, two-sack drive that forced a Zaire fumble in the end zone recovered by Michigan.

When McElwain arrived in Gainesville in 2015, he wasn’t shy in admitting the Gators were thin at the offensive line, even going through a little back-and-forth in the media with former coach Will Muschamp over it. But it’s Year 3 now. The players and experience are there. Youth wasn’t an excuse for Michigan. What’s the problem? McElwain gave a one-sentence response.

“We’ve got to make sure we’re doing what we’re supposed to do in the weight room,” he said.

As for what to expect at quarterback moving forward, McElwain admitted the staff considered putting Luke Del Rio in the game at one point. When you’re looking at playing a third quarterback, things are a mess.

Redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks started and went 5-for-9 for 75 yards, including a perfect 34-yard deep ball down the sideline on the second play of the game, but he didn’t have a chance to do much else and was pulled in the third quarter after a fumble. McElwain seemed to think Notre Dame graduate transfer Malik Zaire’s legs would give Florida its best chance as the game went on, given the pressure the quarterbacks were under, but he was sacked five times and went 9-for-17 passing.

The coach said they had more ideas in the game plan, but there was little opportunity to use it because of the poor blocking.

“You usually don’t play great when you’re playing off your back foot,” McElwain said of the quarterbacks. Neither Franks nor Zaire was made available to the media afterward.

The Gators have won the SEC East two years in a row — something McElwain is quick to point out to frustrated fans — but the offense has shown no signs of any improvement over that time, and that’s McElwain’s side of the ball. With 11 minutes to play in the third quarter, the Florida offense had only run 21 plays. It went 2-for-13 on third down. How does that weigh on a defense?

“Those guys know what they have to do,” sophomore defensive end CeCe Jefferson said. “We’re just supportive in any way we can be. We’re not a team that, when things go bad, points fingers at each other. We’re one team. Those guys know what they have to get accomplished.”

Multiple other Florida defensive players gave similar responses to that question. It looks like the defense is going to be tasked with carrying the team this year, just as they have for the past several years.

After playing their first season opener away from home since 1987, the Gators head back to Gainesville without answering any of the questions they’d raised entering this game.

McElwain says they’re not going back to the drawing board, but what Florida showed against Michigan Saturday wasn’t anywhere near good enough.

“I thought we prepared hard,” he said. “We had a tough camp. Guys were ready to play. Their strength overtook us.”

(Top photo: Albert Pena, CSM/AP Images)

Read more quality sports coverage with a free 7-day trial

If you enjoyed this article, start a free trial today to get full access to all the smart, in-depth coverage on The Athletic, then get 25% off the annual plan.

Chris Vannini covers the Group of Five conferences, college football coaching and national college football for The Athletic. He previously was managing editor of CoachingSearch.com. Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisVannini.